Finance and the Small Firm

This edited collection examines key issues in the financing of small businesses. The premise is that there are imperfections in the market for the provision of finance for small firms. Excessive dependence upon short-term facilities such as loans and overdrafts has inhibited more long-standing relationships between small firms and providers of finance. The contributors call for changes which would solve this current imbalance. They suggest that small firms need to become more professional in their financial management, with owners more prepared to share equity. Financial institutions need to rely less on collateral and concentrate more on making informed judgements about the qualities of each business. In this volume, small firms are are broken down into specific types: the micro firm; the "high-tech" small firm; and the small firm owned by an individual from an ethnic minority.